Indirect or &#34;bounce&#34; lighting apparatus



Dec. 27, 1966 H. HlLZEN 3,294,962

INDIRECT OR "BOUNCE" LIGHTING APPARATUS Filed Fb. 25, 1965 INVENTOR, Hy Hi lzen,

ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,294,962 INDIRECT 0R BOUNCE LIGHTING APPARATUS Hy Hilzen, 1 Shore Road Drive, Yonkers, N.Y. 10710 Filed Feb. 23, 1965, Ser. No. 434,542 7 Claims. (Cl. 240-1.3)

The present invention relates to electrical lighting apparatus and more particularly to the type in which the light source is directed onto a reflector which diffuses the light it receives. Such system is commonly called bounce or indirect lighting and is used general-1y for the stage, in photography and television studios and for illuminating exhibition and display areas and the like.

An object of this invention is to provide novel and improved constructions for bounce lighting apparatus which may be portable, or where suitable, may be for permanent installation, involving novel construction and association of the reflector and light source means to afliord easy change in the light performance and to attain stability in all settings of said components; provision for adjustability being afforded by mechanical arrangement, and if desired, also by electrical control means.

A further object thereof is to provide novel and improved illuminating apparatus of the character described, which is simple in construction, reasonable in cost, easy to manipulate and efficient in carrying out the purposes for which it is designed.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as this disclosure proceeds.

For one practice of this invention, four incandescent quartz lamps for electrical actuation are mounted equispaced around a circle, each having its own reflector. These reflectors are mounted on a common front flange plate which closes the mouth of a receptacle serving as the casing for this assembly. Said casing is positioned within a clevis atop a post, and swivelled thereto. An axial tubular member is secured at its ends in central holes in said casings back wall and said front cover plate, to serve as a slide bearing for a much elongated central stem rod of an umbrella structure whose cover is made of light-reflective material. Said quartz lamps face the mouth of the umbrella. Independent means are provided to releasably lock the casing to the clevis, and the umbrella stem to the casing. A counterweight is releasably fixed on said umbrella stem and its position therealong is changeable. If desired, switching circuits may be included so that alternate lamps may be selectively connected either in series or in parallel across the power lines.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this application, similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a lighting apparatus embodying teachings of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of a modified embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a wiring diagram of the lighting circuit which may be employed for this apparatus.

In the drawing, the numeral 15 designates generally a frame part comprising a receptacle 16 having a front cover plate 16' which carries the inward extending reflectors 17', 17", 17" and 17", in equi-spaced relation around a circle about an axially positioned slide bearing 18. This composite frame part 15, is swivelled in a clevis 19, whose stem 20 is telescopically slidably adjustable in a tubular post 21 of a stand or other sort of framework.

In front of each of said reflectors, said frame part 15 carries an electrical incandescent halogen quartz lamp in this embodiment. These are indicated by the numerals 22', 22", 22" and 22" respectively. A long rod 23 is slidably positioned through said slide bearing 18 and releasably fixable by a setscrew 24. This rod carries axial-1y thereon, a reflector means 25 facing said lamps and their reflectors, and the same may be a foldable umbrella structure, the inside surface of whose fabric cover 26 is light-reflective to bounce off the light received into said umbrella from said lamps. Said rod 23 is the stem of said umbrella-form reflector 25, and the carrier for a counter-weight 27 at the other side of the frame part 15, where its position along said rod is adjustable by means of the set-screw 28.

The structure shown in FIG. 2 is similar to FIG. 1, except that instead of the umbrella-form reflector, it has the umbrella structure indicated generally by the numeral 25', which comprises two hingedly related panels 30, 30' opening and closing like the pages of a book, whose angle of divergence towards the light source is adjustable by moving either the bar 31 or the hinge coupling 32 to another position along the rod 23; said bar and panels being pivotally linked by the link members 33, 33". Any desired setting is secured by means of set-screws In the specific embodiments illustrated, it is preferred to be able to operate the lighting means to have bright light and various degrees of dimmed light. To accomplish this, alternate lamps are arranged in similar circuits so that they may be operated either in parallel to have bright light, or in series to have dim light. Such circuits indicated generally by the numeral 36 involving the lamps 22', 22, and by the numeral 36' involving the lamps 22" and 22", have a common power source whose mains are indicated by the numerals 37, 37'. Description of the connections of one circuit, will sufiice for the other.

Referring therefore to FIG. 3, the lamps 22, 22 are associated with a double-pole double-throw switch indicated generally by the numeral 38 comprised of the twin blades 39, 40 for connection respectively to the contact terminals 41 and 42 to one side respectively, and for connection respectively to the contact terminals 43 and 44 to the other side. Terminals 42 and 43 are connected by a conductor 45. One of the terminals of each of the lamps 22, 22" are connected by a conductor 46 to the terminal 41. The other terminal of the lamp 22' is connected by a conductor 47 to the power terminal 37. The other terminal of the lamp 22 is connected by a conductor 48 to the terminal 42. The blades of the switch are connected respectively by the conductors to the power terminals 37, 37. When the switch 38 is closed to the left in FIG. 3, the lamps 22, 22" are connected in series, and when to the right, in parallel. The switch for controlling the lamps 22" and 22"" is indicated by the numeral 38'.

The lamps may be of any type and the reflector structures 25, 25' may be of any type whether fixed or adjustable in size. Of importance is that both the light source and the reflector onto which all the light is directed, shall be respectively in symmetry With the axis line of the rod 23.

In use, the apparatus is stationed so that the light bounced by the reflector means 25 or 25 shall be directed to the space to be illuminated; the distance between said light source and reflector means determining the extent of diffusion.

This invention is capable of numerous forms and various applications without departing from the essential features herein disclosed. It is therefore intended and desired that the embodiments shown herein shall be deemed illustrative and not restrictive and that the patent shall cover all patentable novelty herein set forth; reference being bad to the following claims rather than to the specific description and showings herein, to indicate the scope of this invention.

I claim:

1. In an electrical lighting apparatus of the character described, a frame having a slide bearing means, an elongated rod slidably fitted through said bearing, a first reflector means on said rod, electric lamp means posi- *tioned on said frame and arranged substantially symmetrically around said bearing, second reflector means on said frame, directly opposite said first reflector means and adjacent said lamp means, adapted to direct light from said lamp means onto said first reflector means; said lamp mean being intermediate said first and second reflector means and means to hold said rod in any desired position along said bearing whereby the distance from said lamp means to the first reflector means is adjustable.

2. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the second reflector means comprises a plurality of reflectors and the lamp means constitutes a single lamp at each of such plural reflectors respectively.

3. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein the lamp means comprises first, second, third and fourth lamps spaced around said bearing; the first and third lamps being opposite each other and the second and fourth lamps being opposite each other; said lamps being associated in a circuit for selectively connecting the first and third lamps by one switching means, in series and parallel, and for selectively connecting the second and fourth lamps by another switch means, in series and parallel.

4. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said rod is removable from said bearing and the first reflector means in compactly foldable.

5. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 1, including a counterweight carried on said rod and means to releasably fix said counterweight at different positions on said rod; said frame being intermediate said counterweight and the first reflector means.

6. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 1, including frame means holding the frame which has the slide bearing thereon, pivotally mounted thereon.

7. An electrical lighting apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the first reflector means is an umbrella structure; said rod being the stem of said umbrella; the second reflector means facing the mouth of said umbrella.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,216,696 2/1917 101m 240 1.3 1,817,100 8/1931 Robins-on et a1. 24041.1 2,205,860 6/1940 Olds 2401@3 2,913,569 11/1959 Edelstein 2401.3

NORTON ANSHER, Primary Examiner; 

1. IN AN ELECTRIC LIGHTING APPARATUS OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, A FRAME HAVING A SLIDE BEARING MEANS, AN ELONGATED ROD SLIDABLY FITTED THROUGH SAID BEARING, A FIRST REFLECTOR MEANS ON SAID ROD, ELECTRIC LAMP MEANS POSITIONED ON SAID FRAME AND ARRANGED SUBSTANTIALLY SYMMETRICALLY AROUND SAID BEARING, SECOND REFLECTOR MEANS ON SAID FRAME, DIRECTLY OPPOSITE SAID FIRST REFLECTOR MEANS AND ADJACENT SAID LAMP MEANS, ADAPTED TO DIRECT LIGHT FROM SAID LAMP MEANS ONTO SAID FIRST REFLECTOR MEANS; SAID LAMP MEANS BEING INTERMEDIATE SAID FIRST AND SECOND REFLECTOR MEANS AND MEANS TO HOLD SAID ROD IN ANY DESIRED POSITION ALONG SAID BEARING WHEREBY THE DISTANCE FROM SAID LAMP MEANS TO THE FIRST REFLECTOR MEANS IS ADJUSTABLE. 